ISC’s Commercial Director, Diane Glass shares her perspectives from the point of view of education suppliers as this school year progresses:

As the English-medium K-12 international school market expands, the opportunities for reputable education suppliers beyond their national markets increase. The market has grown by 5.5% year on year since 2012 and income from tuition fees has increased over the same period by more than $38 billion – a staggering 778%.

There has never been so much international education choice for families in many cities of the world. 306 international schools are already established in Dubai, 169 in Shanghai, 160 in Abu Dhabi, and 142 in Beijing. Nevertheless, growth continues. 104 new international schools opened in August this year including 18 new international schools in China, 17 in the United Arab Emirates, 12 in Malaysia, and five in both Vietnam and Thailand, and the development of new international schools continues in a wide range of countries.

Many governments in developing countries now recognise international schools as a route to improving K-12 education provision within their countries quickly and effectively. Restrictions that have existed in some countries on the number of local children attending the international schools are increasingly being lifted with Malaysia, Thailand, China and now Vietnam (as you can read below) as notable cases.

It’s an excellent market for high quality suppliers and educational specialists to work in because standards are generally very high and, as the market grows, so it becomes increasingly competitive. With competition comes the need for better resourcing, facilities, quality provision and differentiation to attract discerning families, and so the demand for reliable, reputable suppliers, that can meet the very specific requirements of the schools.

British and American education suppliers are particularly favoured because teachers and leaders working in international schools are often familiar with them and trust an established provider. However, for suppliers wishing to break into the English-medium international schools market or to strategically develop their business within it, understanding the opportunities is no simple task. This biannual issue of News from the Ground, along with a range of resources from ISC Research, are designed specifically to support education suppliers with this challenge.

We look forward to supporting you throughout the rest of this academic year.